blockbuster movies have only one million audience!

Charso Press: The issue of screening and the problems that Iranian cinema is currently facing in this regard is considered one of the hot issues in cinema. Many filmmakers who have screened their works in cinemas have objected to the screening conditions, and many others do not want to screen their works in cinemas.

The Trade Union Council, whose new members have been introduced for some time, are looking for suitable solutions for screening and encouraging filmmakers to show their films.

In this regard, we have discussed with Mohammad Ahmadi, a member of the Drama Guild Council and one of Iran’s experienced producers and filmmakers, about the programs that the Drama Guild Council has followed during this period. Ahmadi says that currently more than 100 movies from 1997 to this year are scheduled to be screened, despite the fact that screening in cinemas is not the only solution for screening movies in cinemas, and other options are also available. Thought.

* The theater trade union council is facing many problems in the field of screen these days, although not much time has passed since the new members started working, but what steps have been taken to solve these problems?

The Trade Union Council is consulting to find a suitable solution for the screening of more than 100 films that are still waiting to be screened. Some of the films were produced in 1997 and 1998, and most of the films are for the last 2 years, of course, the films that have recently been screened are also in the queue for screening. With the knowledge of the current conditions, the trade union council has decided to find a suitable solution for the screening. In the meetings we had, we emphasized that suitable solutions should be found for the screening, and in addition to that, there should also be support from the cinema organization so that we can provide suitable plans to persuade the owners of the films to screen their films in different models. .

Currently, “Art and Experience” does not pursue its activity seriously, and with the change of management, it can be said that “Art and Experience” is in an undecided state. Meanwhile, “Art and Experience” was a place for the owners of the works to release their films in good conditions, so that somehow the number and burden of the films was reduced. But the reality is that we cannot do anything by force and tell the filmmakers that you must release your film in a certain group, but solutions should be found and along with that, encouragement and guidance should be created to introduce the potential of films in the field. Film owners should be provided with a suitable screening opportunity.

It should not be forgotten that screening in cinemas is not the first way for proper sales and visibility of films. Even with a logical view, it can be said that screening in cinemas can be detrimental to some films. For example, in America, about 700 films are produced during the year, and I don’t think that more than 200 films will be released in theaters. In these countries, due to the existence of copyright and its legality, filmmakers can make a profit from the sale of various rights, making the production cost, even without screening their film in cinemas. But because we don’t have a copyright law, all our efforts and expectations are to be released in cinemas. Unfortunately, with all the consultations that have been done, we have not been able to convince them to buy the movies at a better price. In fact, they don’t buy the TV or the movies, or if they do, they offer the price of the last 15 years. All these things have gone hand in hand so that all the pressures are on the release in cinemas, why its commercial and credit aspect is very important for the filmmakers.

In this regard, the Drama Guild Council is looking for different solutions and is negotiating with platforms, “Art and Experience” and the cinema organization. I hope that “Art and Experience” will start its activity as soon as possible, along with that, we hope that the online screening will also be pursued a little more seriously, the issue of advertising is also very important so that we can introduce the films to the audience well.

In my opinion, the most important issue is that proper advertising should be done so that people return to the cinema again, it is true that the type of films that are released is also very important and some films may not be suitable for release, but the problem is that if the film is good And even if it is suitable for the box office, it will not be well received by the audience. Currently, our best-selling movies have close to one million viewers, while this number of viewers is approximately 1/10 of the population, and we have to find a solution and reconcile people with cinema so that we can attract them to cinema. Of course, it should be remembered that with the construction of new movie theaters, we don’t have a problem with modern theaters, but we don’t have an audience.

* According to your reference to attracting audiences, many have criticized the increase in cinema ticket prices and believe that this issue has caused a drop in audiences. This is despite the fact that Iranian cinema has not had a significant audience for years.

I don’t believe that movie theater tickets are causing the audience to fall. I have nothing to do with cinemas in other countries and ticket prices, but the problem is that 3 years ago, the price of cinema tickets was 20,000 tomans, how much was the price of food and drink, or what was the price in dollars, and today what percentage of currency and goods have become more expensive? This increase in cinema ticket prices is not comparable to the inflation rate at all. But the reality is that going to the cinema is not the first priority of the people and it is out of the people’s entertainment basket, while the cinema is in the category of healthy and cheap entertainment. .

* In addition to your opinion about the price of cinema tickets, the most important issue is the quality of productions in Iranian cinema. The problem is that the quality of many works is such that the audience does not want to go to the cinema, and in such a situation, the needs of today’s cinema audience should be recognized with an expert’s eye, so that the cinema falls away. This is despite the fact that the priority of many directors is not the audience.

Maybe there are some directors whose audience is not their priority, although their number is very few. As a producer or director, we make a film for the audience to express ourselves and show our taste. I have to say about production, the number of films produced per year should increase and I suggest that the Production Licensing Council or the Cinema Organization take this policy to increase the production of films to at least 50%.

It is true that currently, for example, out of 90 films, only 10 films are among the best-selling and profitable films, but if production increases, this number will undoubtedly increase. In such a situation, moviegoers can choose movies more easily and more solutions can be considered for screening.

It should not be forgotten that cinemas can screen 60 to 65 movies during the year, that’s why we should look for better ways to screen other than cinemas. If the volume of production increases and the Cinema Organization and the Production Licensing Council broaden their perspective, good things will happen. Another problem is that producers and filmmakers have the duty to raise people’s expectations, that is, we should not see what the audience wants and offer it to the audience at a lower level. Meanwhile, in recent years, filmmakers whose only goal is the box office are looking for what the audience wants to offer it at a lower level. Unfortunately, our films are not standard in any way, that’s why they are not well received, of course, we also have filmmakers who raise the flag of Iranian cinema in international festivals. But I still believe that the level of expectation from filmmakers should be higher.

* Considering the potential of online screening that you mentioned, currently the problems that have arisen for the platforms themselves can reduce the acceptance of filmmakers for online screening.

Of course, these discussions and problems are not ineffective. But our problem is that the platform, TV and cinema stand opposite each other, in the sense that they do not fit together, while they all need each other and should work hand in hand to make everything better, there are issues. that these three do not fit together and they must be forced to sit together, therefore these misunderstandings must be resolved so that they know that they are not against each other and that they need each other. The discussion of the existing problems is not related to the online screening, because the permission for the online screening is issued by the cinema organization. Of course, the existing debates are not ineffective and it can be said that the existing debates are mostly psychological warfare.

* The Cinema Organization had previously said about the support packages for the release of films, to what extent has this plan been completed?

According to friends, some of these support packages are being realized. Currently, we are looking for support in the Drama Guild Council, of course, film owners should know what package is suitable for them based on the potential of their film, realistically and not dreamily. In fact, all filmmakers think that their film was wronged in the release, even though if the film is well received, they will get better conditions for release in cinemas. It is true that the release conditions are important, but the film itself determines how it will sell, after that it is the release conditions that can be suitable for sales.

* In part of your talk, you mentioned buying movies from TV and not increasing the purchase price, please explain about this.

First of all, television selects films with strict censorship and supervision. When a movie is selected for purchase, it does not offer a suitable price for sale. This is despite the fact that we mentioned during a meeting with the film supply manager of Radio and Television that usually 25% of the estimated cost of the film was returned to television from the sale of rights, but currently television is offering 5% of the finished production cost of a film. . We expect the TV to pay attention to this issue in their new look, because the actual figure of buying the rights of a movie is not the amount that the TV announces.